The Family of Blood and Magic
by Isabelnecessaryonabicycle
Summary: Orphans of war, twins Harry and Alyssa Potter don't remember ever having a loving family that cared for them, they've only ever had each other. Going to Hogwarts widens their horizons and they come to realize that they're going to have to fight if they want to stay together. In-Progress. AU
1. A New Chapter

_**Summary: Orphans of war, twins Harry and Alyssa Potter don't remember ever having a loving family that cared for them, they've only ever had each other. Going to Hogwarts widens their horizons and they come to realize that they're going to have to fight if they want to stay together. **_

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter**

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**Chapter One: A New Chapter **

Sunlight shot through the small attic window with no curtains blocking the shine. Alyssa rolled over trying to not think about the inevitable of the real world. The feathers of the old pillow poked her in the cheek making her twitch.

"Come on, let's get this over with." Harry nudged her arm; she opened her eyes to see her brother looking down at her in amusement. His green eyes were piercing through his glasses and his messy black hair looked mused from sleep. He was already dressed in overlarge clothes.

"Can I poison them today?" she asked as she sat up and looked at the boxes around them. Their relatives had dumped them in the attic once they both couldn't fit the cupboard under the stairs. They slept on two old mattresses and wore their cousin's used clothes. The attic was relatively dust free because Harry didn't want them to have breathing problems, he'd snuck some clean products up here to clean it whenever they were told to dust the bedrooms on the second floor. They stored the only clothes they had in one of the boxes and occasionally whenever they had free time they would search through the other boxes up here.

"Not today, I don't want the hassle of having three dead bodies in the house." Harry laughed as he rearranged his ratty blanket. They'd had one of their only arguments about which one should have the blanket with fewer holes; she'd only agreed to have the one with better condition if they used both together in the winter months. She didn't often give up, but where her twin was concerned, Harry meant everything to her. "Especially when we wouldn't have the strength to move two of them."

"We could just leave." She brushed her hands through her wavy auburn brown hair, thinking about the hairbrush downstairs that she'd never been allowed to use. Harry occasionally brushed his fingers through her hair when she couldn't reach the back or when there was next to nothing for them to do.

"You know my feelings on that." Harry whispered, his head down as he folded his overlarge nightshirt.

She sighed as she changed into her own overlarge clothes. The twins hardly owned anything that was theirs. There was only old baby blankets that they could say belonged to them; they had their names stitched on the cream wool and red ribbon woven through. They had a couple of books they had sneaked away from Dudley's second room because he'd never even touched them so he was unlikely to notice them missing.

The most treasured items were a box of letters that their mother had written to her sister. They had found them when they'd been moved up to the attic, and that was when they found out the biggest secret that their relatives were keeping from them. Their mother had been a witch, she'd studied magic and there had been a war. They had kept their knowledge of this from their relatives and hidden the box of precious letters so they wouldn't be burnt. They'd often spent afternoons rereading them and touching the words written in their mother's hand. It was the only connection they had to their parents.

They'd also found a box of photo albums with what must have belonged to their grandparents. Their eyes had been immediately drawn to the young girl with red hair and bright green eyes that looked exactly like Harry's this had led them to the assumption that their father must have had black hair like Harry's and either brown or hazel eyes since Alyssa's eyes were a hazel-green.

Harry had promised that as soon as they got their letters to Hogwarts they would leave this house and never come back. They had already started packing in secret at the start of the year, as it would look less suspicious. They visited the library on occasion to see if they had any books about magic but were always left disappointed.

They had an old rucksack that used to belong to Dudley until he'd got a new one was hidden behind some of the boxes, it was already filled with the letters, precious photos and a couple of books that their mother must have owned and then left with her parents, such as an old 'The Muggleborn Guide to the Wizarding World' book that was worn and folded, a book called 'A History of Magic' which held some of the history of the wizarding world and 'Magical Theory' what was about how spells worked. This had helped them understand their accidental magic and how to better control it, knowing that their emotions played a big part in the magic, they had read some meditation books from the neighborhood library for breathing exercises and clearer minds.

A couple of years ago, she had the bright idea to nick the change in the dirty laundry that they were made to do, this had given them enough money to occasionally buy food when they weren't given meals. They kept the rest of the money so they would have it to escape, they would need it to get the tube to Charing Cross to pass through to Diagon Alley.

"Ready? It's the fat pig's birthday." Harry smiled as she tapped him on the shoulder to turn around.

"Don't remind me," she rolled her eyes, as Harry reached for the attic's trap door.

"I think they mentioned taking him to the zoo today, did you want to sneak away to the library for a couple of hours?" Harry smiled as he turned away from the door.

"Really?" she quietly squealed, the library was their only safe place. They tried to escape there as often as they could. The school library was similar, in that it was a safe place for them whilst on school breaks, Dudley wouldn't find them there and as they sat near the librarian he couldn't get away with bullying them with a witness there.

"Yeah, unless they drop us with Mrs. Figg." Harry's face scrunched up, she could tell he was thinking of the old cat smell that the whole house smelt like.

"I hope not, it would be harder to sneak away from there." She smiled as Harry nodded in confirmation, then they both went quiet as Harry tried to open the door as quietly as possible. Their relatives liked them to be as quiet, so they tried not to wake them up when they went down to cook breakfast. If they got away with it they could eat some of the food they cooked, since they were only allowed a piece of toast each.

Harry lifted the hook away from the door, and lent out the hole as it opened. He pushed gently on the foldable loft ladder and the wooden stairs collapsed just above the floor below. They sighed quietly in relief as no loud sounds were made. From there they climbed down the ladder and Harry pulled on the string so it would reclose the attic door. They tiptoed across the landing and to the stairs, where they stepped over the ones that creaked and walked into the kitchen. They brushed their teeth over the kitchen sink and washed their faces in turn.

No words were exchanged as they went about their jobs as quietly as possible. They cleaned the counters and the table and set out the plates, cups and cutlery. They pored the drinks and got the ice cubes from the freezer. Then they opened the windows to let the summer air in, their aunt always complained if the air felt too stuffy. Not having to do anything else until they heard a noise from upstairs they looked through to the living room to see the mountains of presents for Dudley. They laughed quietly as they conversed about how many tantrums their cousin would make today, and if they would be required to clean up all the wrapping paper.

Heavy footsteps sounded above their heads and they rushed into the kitchen space, frying the eggs and bacon and putting the bread into the toaster. She took charge of cutting up the fruit that their aunt would eat. By the time footsteps were heard coming down the stairs food was already been put onto their uncle's plate and they had began washing up the stuff that was no longer needed.

"The bacon better not be burnt, I want everything perfect on Duddy's birthday." Aunt Petunia snapped as she stood in the archway, she looked down her nose at the food on the table and turned around to go and wake Dudley.

By the time Uncle Vernon entered the room they had the second batch of bacon cooking, she was frying it this time as Harry put the morning newspaper next to Uncle's plate.

"Comb your hair!" he barked at them, which was ironic because they didn't even give them a comb or brush to use. She rolled her eyes as she looked at the food frying in front of her. Harry served out the cooked food onto the plates, while she hand dried the utensils.

Dudley arrived into the room with his mother and waddled over to the stack of presents, he immediately started counting them, but after a couple of minutes he turned around with a disappointed face. Her eyes connected with Harry's telling him to quickly make his way over to her side of the room, she didn't want him in hitting distance.

"Thirty-six, that's two less than last year," Dudley scowled at his parents as the twins tried to be unseen.

"Darling, you haven't counted Auntie Marge's present, see, it's here under this big one from Mummy and Daddy." Their Aunt pointed to the large present that looked like a badly wrapped bike.

"All right, thirty-seven then," The twins sat down in their seats sensing the tantrum that was very likely going to happen. They tried to quietly and quickly eat their food without drawing attention to themselves.

"And we'll buy you another two presents while we're out today. How's that, popkin? Two more presents. Is that all right?" Their Aunt quickly said, as she patted her son on the shoulder.

"So I'll have thirty… thirty…" Dudley frowned in thought, and she couldn't help silently giggling as he struggled. She bit her lip to keep the laughter in, noticing that Harry was also having trouble.

"Thirty-nine, sweetums,"

"Oh, alright then." Dudley sat down and grabbed the nearest present dragging it towards him.

"Little tyke wants his money's worth, just like his father. 'Atta boy, Dudley!" Uncle Vernon chuckled as he began eating again. The twins exchanged looks, glad that hurricane Dudley hadn't hit.

The telephone went off, and she began feeling uneasy as soon as their Aunt went off to pick it up. She tapped Harry's hand twice, in silent communication as Dudley unwrapped his presents.

It didn't take long for their Aunt to return, she looked both angry and worried, they didn't have to guess that it had something to do with them.

"Bad news, Vernon, Mrs. Figg's broken her leg. She can't take them." Harry's hand tightened on her at the news, even though they'd been hoping for this it suddenly occurred to them that their relatives didn't like leaving them alone in the house. "Now what?" Their Aunt glared accusingly in their direction as if they had made this happen. Dudley looked at them in horror, and she felt dread fill her stomach. Something was about to happen.

"We could phone Marge," Their Uncle suggested, and Alyssa shivered in terror. That woman, if you could call her a woman, was terrible. She had nightmares about Marge drowning Harry and her.

"Don't be silly, Vernon, she hates them."

"What about what's her name, your friend Yvonne?"

"On vacation in Majorca." Aunt Petunia snapped, Harry looked up hastily and she could tell he was about to say something.

"You could just leave us here."

"And come back and find the house in ruins?"

"We won't blow up the house," Harry said, but they weren't listening.

"I would," She murmured, she twitched as Harry elbowed her.

"I suppose we could take them to the zoo… and leave them in the car…"

"That car's new, their not sitting in it alone…" The conversation carried on till Dudley began fake crying, drawing his parents attention to him.

"Dinky Duddydums, don't cry! Mummy won't let them spoil your special day!" Aunt Petunia flung herself at Dudley who was still sitting with his opened presents laid about around him.

"I… don't… want… them… t-t-to come!" Dudley yelled as he grinned at them over his mother's shoulder. "They always sp-spoil everything!"

Alyssa glared at Dudley; hopefully she'd achieve the power to kill with a look. She wanted to pounce and kick the stuffing out of that fat pig. He constantly bullied them and never got into trouble. He should count himself lucky that they wouldn't see him ever again in a month or two. She was determined to study as many curses as she could so that one day she could pay him back for what he put them though, all those times which Harry held her back and been made to watch as Dudley beat up her brother.

The bell rang, and the family raced about. Aunt Petunia went to the door and Uncle Vernon put down his newspaper. Dudley put on his new gold watch, and the twins began putting the plates in the dishwasher.

Half an hour later, they were all siting in the car. Cramped because Dudley's friend Piers Polkiss who looked like a rat was sitting in the back of the car as well. Because of their relatives practically starving them they both managed to fit into the same seat. Alyssa had the spot next to the window because Harry didn't trust the other boys not to do something to her.

The twins were being as quiet as possible as Uncle Vernon complained and Dudley and his friend talked. Mourning the books they could have been reading at the library.

The day was sunny and the zoo was crowed with families. They managed to get Lemon ice pops and were feeling apprehensive at this oddly good fortune. They stayed away from the others as they walked around the zoo, looking in wonder at the animals around them. They'd never seen them in person, only in books. After lunch they went into the reptile house.

"They're really eerie," she looked at the Sidewinder snake in front of them.

"Make it move!" Dudley shouted at his father. They both looked over to see him in front of the largest snake. Uncle Vernon tapped on the glass but it looked like the snake was asleep. "Do it again!" Dudley ordered, and Uncle Vernon banged on the glass. "This is boring," Their cousin moaned and turned away.

Harry laughed, and dragged her over to the snake their cousin had been looking at.

"It's a Boa Constrictor, Al. one of the largest snakes in the world! They aren't poisonous, but are still really deadly; they can wrap themselves around their prey and squeeze until they no longer breathe." Harry said excitedly, she smiled in amusement at his enthusiasm. She heard Harry hiss under his breath, as she glanced over to see where their relatives were. Looking back at the snake she saw it turn around and stare at her brother. Her eyes widened as the snake jerked its head in the direction or their cousin and raised its eyes to the ceiling. Harry hissed at the snake and Alyssa's jaw dropped. Her brother and the snake appeared to be in conversation, and it was scaring her. If anyone caught him!

"Harry! Please stop!" she whispered frantically to him. Harry looked round in confusion. She glanced over at their relatives to see if they'd noticed, and breathed a sigh of relief at their turned backs.

"What?"

"You were talking to the snake!" she tugged at his hand and looked at him in concern.

"Yeah, and?" Harry asked, an eyebrow lifted.

"You were hissing!" she hissed at him, nervously twitching at the thought of him being caught.

"No I wasn't, I was just talking to it." Harry frowned, looking back to the snake in confusion. The Boa Constrictor still had its eyes on him.

"I swear, Harry. You were hissing at it!" she bit her lip, confused at why Harry thought he'd been talking to the snake. "Maybe its magic? It could be a magical language, you can't let them hear you."

"A magical language?" Harry ran a hand through his hair, and she tugged at his hand wanting to get as far away from the snake as possible. "But wouldn't you have understood it? It's not like I learned how to speak snake, so how can I?"

"I don't know, but I don't want you near it. We should leave." She turned around to see Dudley's friend glance over at them, his eyes widened as he noticed the snake awake.

"DUDLEY! MR. DURSLEY! COME AND LOOK AT THIS SNAKE! YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT IT'S DOING!" Piers shouted and had Dudley come waddling around the corner as fast as he could.

"Move, move quickly." She hissed, and dragged them both away from the snake and up the stairs next to them, hopefully Dudley wouldn't notice them.

They watched as Piers and Dudley leaned up to the glass, their faces pressed on it as they stared.

"Come on, before we do something that could get us in trouble." She murmured. Harry nodded and they began walking away. Living with the Dursleys for almost ten years had sharpened their survival instincts and they knew that going near the glass would result in something happening.

The rest of the day passed without incident, and ended with them safely back in the attic away from the people who would look for any excuse to harm them.

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**Reviews are always met with excitement and happiness, so to everyone (incase there's some anonymous reviewers), thank you so much for taking the time to write!**


	2. The Plan for Freedom

**Summary: Orphans of war, twins Harry and Alyssa Potter don't remember ever having a loving family that cared for them, they've only ever had each other. Going to Hogwarts widens their horizons and they come to realize that they're going to have to fight if they want to stay together.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter**

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**Chapter Two: The Plan for Freedom **

By the time the summer holidays had started, the twins sighed in relief, as they would no longer have to go to the same school as Dudley and his friends. The summer days were safer since Dudley spent most of them with his friends. And they spent them reading in the neighborhood library and working in the garden.

They had packed a couple of rations to eat after they got their letters. Not knowing if their parents had a bank account at the Gringotts bank their mother spoke about in her letters. On one morning when they'd woken up later, since their Aunt allowed them to sleep in on weekends, they woke up to a horrible smell penetrating the house.

"Did she try to cook or something?" Alyssa asked her brother as they made their way downstairs.

"Hopefully she hasn't burned down the house, I don't know how but they'd probably blame it on us." Harry replied. They walked quietly into the kitchen to see a large metal tub in the sink. It appeared to be full of dirty rags in grey water. "What's this?" Harry asked, she saw their aunt purse her lips at the question; her blonde hair seemed to twitch with irritation. Their relatives had a rule about them asking questions, which they found stupid, how could you learn if you didn't ask questions?

"Your new school uniform."

"Oh," she noticed Harry's lips twitching. "I didn't realize it had to be so wet." Harry held his hand to the side and she gently slapped them together and tried to hold the laughter at bay.

"Don't be stupid," Snapped their Aunt. "I'm dyeing some of Dudley's old things gray for you. It'll look just like everyone else's when I've finished." She was feverishly glad that they would never have to wear those ugly grey clothes.

The other two came down and wrinkled their noses at the smell, Dudley had taken to banging his stick everywhere he went reminding them of a toddler. They all sat down to eat, she munched on the toast in thought wondering how long it would be until they would never have to come back here again. The mail slot clicked and the sound of letters hitting the doormat sounded from the open door.

"Get the mail, Dudley," Uncle Vernon spoke from behind his newspaper. She turned her head in wonder, wondering why their uncle was asking Dudley to do anything.

"Make Harry get it."

"Get the mail, boy."

"Make Dudley get it."

"Poke him with your Smelting stick, Dudley."

"I'll get it." She stood up rolling her eyes at all of them as her brother dodged the stick.

Four letters lay on the doormat: a postcard from the dog killer Marge, a brown envelope that looked like a bill, and two letters for Harry and her.

She stared at them in wonder, looking at the familiar thick and heavy yellowish parchment, with their address written in emerald-green ink. They had no stamps.

_Miss. A. Potter_

_The Attic of 4 Privet Drive_

_Little Whinging_

_Surrey_

Harry's had a similar address; rage filled her as she realized that the teachers at Hogwarts knew that they lived in the attic. How could they let this happen to them? Didn't they know it was child abuse?

"Hurry up, girl!" Uncle Vernon shouted. "What are you doing, checking for letter bombs?" She heard him laugh at his own pathetic joke.

Alyssa quickly stuffed the letter into the overlarge trousers she wore. If she did this carefully they could be gone in an hour. All she had to do was hide the letters from their relatives. She went back into the kitchen clutching the other letters in her hand, her eyes seeking out Harry's green ones. His eyes lit, as he understood her thought process, his own hands tightening on the toast he was eating. She handed their Uncle the bill and postcard and sat down, waiting for the chance to escape. Her legs shook in excitement, as she felt the paper in her pocket.

"Marge's ill, ate a funny whelk…" their relatives talked amongst themselves. And as soon as they could the twins escaped from the kitchen and tried to walk calmly to their room.

"I'll get the rucksack," Harry whispered, "See if there's anything worth taking in the second bedroom." She nodded as she opened the door of Dudley's second bedroom and took two baseball hats from the wardrobe. Harry arrived quickly back downstairs and she stuffed the hats in her overlarge pockets and they made their way back downstairs trying not to look suspicious. They'd used the rucksack a couple of times before ahead of time so their Aunt wouldn't look twice at it if she saw it again.

In all they had packed their baby blankets, an alarm clock, a map of London, pocket change, their mother's letters to their aunt, some photos from the albums that included their mother and the three magical books their mother left behind.

"Where are you two going?" Aunt Petunia's snotty voice sounded from the open living room door. She calmly turned around excuse already on her lips.

"The library, we thought we could get out of your hair for the day since all the chores are done." She smiled sweetly, giddy at being so close to the door.

"Be back before Dudley, or they'll be no meals for a week." Aunt Petunia sniffed and walked off. Alyssa grabbed Harry's hand and opened the door. Freedom! Once they were far enough away from the house they began laughing with delight.

"Harry! Harry we're free!" she giggled. Swirling about on the pavement.

"Yeah, I know." He smiled at her, his eyes glittering with happiness. "I've been thinking, we stand out too much in these clothes, we should go to a charity shop and buy some that fit. We could use a changing room to change into them."

"Oh yeah, we look like we live on the streets." She stared down at the clothes she wore. "I can have my own clothes! Do you think I could get a dress Harry? Oh do you think I could?"

"I'll buy you a million dresses if our parents left us any money." Harry smiled gently. They hurried along to the nearest charity shop on the high street. They spent a long time looking at the clothes in front of them, in wonder at buying something for them selves. Finally they chose and paid, they asked the seller if they could change into the clothes and if the shop wanted the clothes they were wearing. Confused the assistant accepted, and the twins happily changed, Alyssa put the letters into the rucksack to look at whilst on the train. She put the baseball hats on their heads so nobody who knew the Dursley's could recognize them.

They brought tickets at Surbiton Station and settled to wait; they looked at the train map and discussed the best route to take. And once the train had arrived they'd chosen the emptiest carriage and took out the letters to read silently.

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

_Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confederation of Wizards)_

_Dear Miss. Potter,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment._

_Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31._

_Yours Sincerely_

_Minerva McGonagall_

_Deputy Headmistress_

Questions exploded in her mind, she was unreeling from confusion at the letter in front of her.

"What does it mean, they await my owl?" Harry asked. "We don't own an owl, shouldn't they know that? They know where we used to live?" They stared at each other in confusion unsure.

"It is odd, it's not even addressed like it should to muggle raised children. The Muggleborn guide talked about a Professor going to the muggleborns home and explaining everything to them. How should we be any different? They don't know that we found her letters or books, and even so we don't know everything that we should." She explained angry at the lack of thought this school had put into them both.

"And they clearly expect an answer by owl, how are we going to get an owl? Do you think they have some sort of owl post office?" Harry asked, frowning down at the parchment in both their laps.

"I don't know, let's look at what is on the enclosed list." She bit her lip and pulled out the second piece of paper.

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

_Uniform_

_First-year students will require:_

_Three sets of plain work robes (black)_

_One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear_

_One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)_

_One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)_

_Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry nametags._

_Course Books_

_All students should have a copy of each of the following:_

_The Standard Book of Spells (Grade 1) by Miranda Goshawk_

_A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot_

_Magical Theory by Adalbert Waffling_

_A Beginners' Guide to Transfiguration by Emeric Switch_

_One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi by Phyllida Spore_

_Magical Drafts and Potions by Arsenius Jigger_

_Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander_

_The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection by Quentin Trimble_

"Why even give us two sets of lists? Surely we can use the books between us?" She interrupted their reading. "Or perhaps they don't expect students to read the books before hand but in class instead…"

"Yeah, we'll have to see if the two books we do have are the latest additions." Harry replied and they looked out the window in thought.

"I know we don't talk about it, but what if the war is still on or if Voldemort and his minions won?" she felt terrified by the thought, their mother's letters talked about whole families being killed off, people going missing and muggleborn children being tortured.

"I don't know, Al. I guess we keep are eyes peeled on what we see at Diagon Alley, Gringotts is run by goblins and the history book explains some about them. They don't like wizards, so I'll best bet is to be polite and not waste their time. I doubt they'd be happy if this Voldemort fellow took over everything since he's a blood purist. If he has taken over we could empty our bank and go across the seas to another magical school like Beauxbatons in France or Salem Witches' Institute in America." Harry remarked, before turning his eyes from hers and staring down at the parchment again. She went back to reading the course list.

_Other Equipment_

_1 Wand_

_1 Cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)_

_1 Set of glass or crystal phials_

_1 Telescope set_

_1 Brass scales_

_Students may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad._

_PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS._

"_Next stop is Waterloo station, you can change there for the Underground."_ Alyssa jerked away from staring at the parchment and glanced at her brother.

"So we can buy an owl…" Harry pondered.

"Why would we? It's not like we're going to have anyone we want to talk to." She frowned as Harry took both letters and put them back into the rucksack.

"They've got the train tickets in the envelope as well. Yet no instructions on how to get on it. We know we have to run through a wall, but which one?" Harry shook his head.

"Perhaps we could get there early and watch out for other students?" she asked.

"It's really strange, Mum had a Professor take them to Diagon Alley and meet up at Kings Cross to show how to get onto the platform. And we get no one. It's like they don't even want us to go to Hogwarts." Harry grabbed her hand as the train slowed to a stop at the station. They jumped off and brought another ticket for the underground. They sat in silence thinking about all the questions they wanted to ask, but wouldn't be able to answer themselves.

Once they got off at Charing Cross they stared, they'd never been to London before, the zoo trip didn't really counted as they'd been in the car and hadn't gone outside the zoo. The pavement was crowded with people, all sweating in the summer heat. They kept their eyes peeled for a grubby-looking pub as they passed bookshops and music stores, restaurants and sweet shops. Harry's grip tightened on her hand as they came upon a giant bookshop, but it wasn't the bookshop that had caught his attention but rather the pub next to it. They stepped to the side and she noticed that no one else seemed to be looking at it, despite its dirty appearance. Goosebumbs crawled across her skin as they stepped up to the door. There was an aura in the air that prickled; she squeezed Harry's hand as they felt what could be described as the feeling of someone walking across their graves as they opened the door.

The inside was dark, not dirty but not exactly clean. There were a couple of people in the corner, and two people at the bar talking to the bartender. And as they stepped in the fire in the fireplace glowed green and an old man stepped out. He was rushing towards the back door, so they followed him but stayed out of sight. They walked through the bar and into a hallway, and saw the old man in what looked to be a long dress walk outside into a courtyard. They peeked through the open door and watched the man tap the wall three times with the point of a stick. Something appeared to be happening as the wall surrounding the man began to push apart making a hole appear until it was a big enough archway to walk through. The old man hurried off at amazing speed for someone of that age, and the twins followed him through the archway onto a cobbled street that twisted and turned out of sight.

"Wow!" They both explained, amazed at the old but bright buildings in front of them. They quickly stepped through as they noticed the archway shrinking. There was a stack of cauldrons right next to them outside the nearest shop.

_Cauldrons – All Sizes – Copper, Brass, Pewter, Silver, Gold – Self-Stirring – Collapsible_

The sign in front of them said.

"Double, double toil and trouble; fire burn and cauldron bubble." She joked, her eyes twinkling in delight, Harry laughed along with her.

"Collapsible doesn't sound like a good idea, do you think they have charms on it so potions don't leak out?" Harry smiled in amusement.

"Let's head to the bank, best to find out if we have anything we can claim." She said back, and they walked down the alley. They passed many stores that made them stop and stare and the odd wares.

Magical Menagerie_ "See Our Line of Pure Stock Kneazles!"_

Magical Luggage Emporium_ "All Your Storage Needs Filled Here!"_

Quality Quidditch Supplies_ "The New Nimbus Two Thousand – Fastest Broom Ever!"_

They reached the tallest building in the street, a snowy white marble building that gleamed in the sunlight, and it towered over all the other buildings and shone like a beacon. They walked up to the bronze doors and noticed the goblins wearing scarlet and gold; they bowed as they walked inside to face another pair of doors, this time silver and engraved.

_Enter, stranger, but take heed_

_Of what awaits the sin of greed,_

_For those who take, but do not earn,_

_Must pay most dearly in their turn._

_So if you seek beneath our floors_

_A treasure that was never yours,_

_Thief, you have been warned, beware_

_Of finding more than treasure there._

Another pair of goblins bowed them through those doors and the doors opened to a cast marble hall. About a hundred goblins sat on high stools behind a long counter, writing in ledgers, weighing coins on scales, and examining stones through eyeglasses. Hundreds of doors led out of the hall, goblins could be seen going into and out of them and sometimes leading other humans through them.

"I'm sorry to bother you, sir," Harry spoke up, bringing the attention of the goblin on them, the goblin leaned over the counter to look at them. "We were wondering if our parents left any money for us here when they died."

"Do you have a key?" the goblin sneered down at them.

"No" She noticed Harry's back straighten.

"What is your name?" The creature peered at them.

"Harry and Alyssa Potter, sir." Harry replied. Curiously they noticed the goblin glance at Harry's forehead where his strange scar rested out of view under his messy fringe.

There were a couple of moments before the goblin spoke again, "Wait there and I'll have the Potter Account Manager send for you both." The goblin grabbed some parchment and wrote on it before dropping it into a slot on the bench, which it disappeared as soon as it landed on. The goblin ignored them and went back to what it had, they stepped aside in case anyone else wanted to approach.

"Mister and Misses Potter?" a voice asked. Turning around they found another goblin.

"Yes," They replied.

"Follow me," the goblin turned and walked away into the depths of the bank.

The goblin led them near the hundreds of gold doors and as they drew closer she noticed that there were names engraved on them. _Gallagher, Garwood, Goldstein, Goyle, Greengrass. _Soon enough they reached the door with _Potter _engraved on it. The goblin knocked once, then opened the door and gestured them to enter.

The room was large; a bookcase spanned one entire wall bursting with scrolls and tomes where all the information of the Potter accounts must be stored. In the center was a large desk made out of dark wood, sitting behind which was a smartly dressed goblin, as they walked into the room the goblin looked up from his work. The door slammed shut behind them as the got to the center of the room in front of the desk.

"I was told you do not have your key, you will be charged for a replacement. But firstly we must preform blood tests on the both of you, to see if you are who you claim to be." The goblin said.

"A blood test? Like in the hospitals?"

"You are thinking of the wrong test, Miss Potter. Sit down, please." They sat down at the round table in the center of the room and the goblin opened one of the draws on the walls and pulled out an intricate knife with ancient symbols written on it.

"The Inheritance ritual dagger is designed not to hurt, it's charmed to heal the skin it touches. Just slit your hands a little bit and let the blood drip onto your parchment." The goblin said, pushing forward four blank pieces of clean parchment and holding out the knife for them to take. Harry took it before her and slowly slit his hand, she grimaced at Harry's blood hit the parchment and began to spread and cover the whole paper. She stared as the cut on his hand closed up; she grabbed it and ran her fingers over the skin that now looked untouched.

"Watch." They watched wide-eyed, as the red-blotted parchment rapidly swirled and formed white words near the middle. The words branched out to create a family tree, which held their names on the bottom. "hm," the goblin nodded and gestured to other piece of parchment. "Now the Inheritance ritual. Three drops of blood." Harry once again slit his hand with the knife and let the blood drip off from the dagger onto the paper.

_**Harry James Potter**_

_Born July 31, 1980._

_**Father:**__ James Charlus Ignotus Potter (March 27, 1960 – October 31, 1981)_

_**Mother:**__ Lily Evangeline Potter nee Evans (January 30, 1960 – October 31, 1981)_

_**Twin:**__ Alyssa Lily Potter (July 31, 1980)_

_**Titles:**_

_Heir Apparent to The Ancient and Noble House of Potter (Right by Blood and Magic)_

_Heir Apparent to The Most Ancient and Noble House of Peverell (Right by Blood and Magic)_

_Heir Presumptive to The Ancient and Noble House of Black (Right by Blood and Will)_

_**Eligible for vaults:**_

_Potter Family vault upon the age of majority (Vault 62)_

_Potter Educational Trust Fund (Vault 687)_

_Evans Vault (Vault 994)_

_Peverell Family Vault upon the age of majority (Vault 3)_

_Black Family Vault only with permission from the current Lord Black (Vault 8)_

_**Eligible deeds for inheritance:**_

_Potter Ancestral Manor – Cardigan Bay, Wales_

_Potter Flat – no.7 Diagon Alley, London_

_Potter Cottage – Godric's Hollow (Declared memorial for the war against Voldemort by the Ministry of Magic)_

_Peverell Villa – Nice, France_

_Black Ancestral Manor – Lancaster_

_Black Town House – no.13 Grimald Place, London_

The goblin nodded, when Harry handed the parchment over. "Now Miss Potter." Alyssa took the ritual knife from her brother watching the frown on his face, she smiled at him gently, if he was allowed to cut his hand with dagger so should she. The blood took shape of the family tree again on the first piece of paper, and on the second words formed out in the blood.

_**Alyssa Lily Potter**_

_Born July 31, 1980._

_**Father:**__ James Charlus Ignotus Potter (March 27, 1960 – October 31, 1981)_

_**Mother:**__ Lily Evangeline Potter nee Evans (January 30, 1960 – October 31, 1981)_

_**Twin:**__ Harry James Potter (July 31, 1980)_

_**Titles:**_

_Heir Presumptive to The Ancient and Noble House of Potter (Right by Blood and Magic)_

_Heir Presumptive to The Most Ancient and Noble House of Peverell (Right by Blood and Magic)_

_Heir Presumptive to The Ancient and Noble House of Black (Right by Blood and Will)_

_Heir Apparent to The Ancient and Noble House of McKinnon (Right by Will and Magic)_

_**Eligible for vaults:**_

_Potter Family vault upon the age of majority (Vault 62)_

_Potter Educational Trust Fund (Vault 687)_

_Evans Vault (Vault 994)_

_Peverell Family Vault upon the age of majority (Vault 3)_

_McKinnon Family Vault upon the age of majority (Vault 19)_

_McKinnon Educational Trust Fund (Vault 537)_

_Black Family vault only with permission from the current Lord Black (Vault 8)_

_**Eligible deeds for inheritance:**_

_Potter ancestral manor – Cardigan Bay, Wales_

_Potter flat – no.7 Diagon Alley. London_

_Potter cottage – Godric's Hollow (Declared memorial for the war against Voldemort by the Ministry of Magic)_

_Peverell Villa – Nice, France_

_Black ancestral manor – Lancaster_

_Black town house – no.13 Grimald Place, London_

_McKinnon ancestral manor – Nottinghamshire _

_McKinnon town house – no.2 Grimald Place, London (Destroyed)_

"Why are we entitled to the Peverell, Black and McKinnon vaults?" She inquired.

"Mr. Potter as the eldest of the two of you is named Heir to the Potter, Peverell and Black lines, and upon his emancipation will become Head of two of those houses. You on the other hand were named Heir of House McKinnon by your godmother, Marlene Mckinnon whose whole family was killed by Death Eaters four months before your parents."

"This doesn't change our names then? We're just entitled to those vaults and estates?" Alyssa remarked, looking at their inheritance.

"No, until you are emancipated at age seventeen or the Ministry recognizes you as an adult you will merely be Miss Potter or Heir Potter, some of the more traditional families may call you Lady Potter as a sign of respect. But once you are emancipated you will be called Lady Potter-McKinnon, as you'll be your brother's apparent Heir." He explained, as Harry and she nodded in understanding.

"Now that you know we are who we say we are. May we have the pleasure of knowing your name?" she looked up to the goblin standing before them.

With slight hesitation the goblin considered it before saying, "I am Senior Account Keeper Ripclaw, Miss Potter."

"Pleased to make your acquaintance Senior Account Keeper Ripclaw," Alyssa politely responded.

The goblin paused and turned to them with a look of confusion. "Well-met, Miss Potter."

"Then onto the rings," Keeper Ripclaw said as he shook off his confusion and went back to the draws in the walls. He traced a nail along its surface and the draw opened. Ripclaw carried a box back with him as sat with them, he set it down in front of them and opened the two compartments, inside were seven rings."In this box are your rings. These rings are charmed to actively detect harmful potions, poisons and spells whenever such comes in close proximity to the rings. They also offer protection from minor jinxes; curses and hexes and partly shield your mind with a basic form of Occlumency." Ripclaw let out a breath. "Occlumency is used to shield and protect your thoughts from intruders."

"Mind readers?" Alyssa asked confused and horrified at the thought of someone reading her private thoughts.

"Of a sort, most wizarding folk are insulted by that term though." Ripclaw answered. "Shall I continue?"

"Oh sorry, yes of course!" She bit her lip in embarrassment, but Harry's hand reached out and squeezed reassuringly.

"Now, should you wish to conceal the rings, simply 'will' it to do so and it will. As all the families are Ancient and Noble their rings work as portkey's to their estates, which means when the estate's name is called by you the 'will' of the ring will work as a portkey and transport you there. For example if you were to say 'Home to Potter Manor' it will take you to Potter Manor." Ripclaw pointed to the one on the far right. "This one states you are the heir to the Ancient and Noble House of Potter. You will receive the House ring, once you are of age." He looked up at them and noticed their looks of confusion. "Mister Potter must wear the ones of the right, and the Miss the ones on the left. All rings go on the right hand, the finger that you feel is right."

"Thank you, Account Keeper Ripclaw." Harry spoke and reached out for the ring Ripclaw had pointed at. It had a gold band and a dark red family crest, as the ring settled on his finger it magically shrunk to fit.

"This is the ring for House Peverell which you are heir to and allowed to claim as such." The second ring was similar, but had a blue family crest with an unusual triangular sign with a line and a cycle inside of it. " Harry moved this one onto another finger. "And finally as you are in line for Heir Presumptive for the Ancient and Noble House of Black." Ripclaw pointed to the slightly smaller ring that was a dark silver and black family crest.

"Now Miss Potter." Alyssa reached for the Potter ring first it was silver and smaller than Harry's, she could feel the magic of the ring as it settled on her finger. It had the same motto written in silver _'Et ferrum Sanguinis et Magia'_. The ring hummed with magic, the skeleton horse on the crest seemed to glow like a totem. Next she took the Peverell ring, silver and blue with the words _'Inde mihi salute gratificet'_. This one had a bigger effect, she felt a wall around her mind, not as if she was caged in but that no one could come in without invite. The dog on the crest wasn't any breed she had ever seen before, its fur was black and despite it being just a part of the crest there appeared to be wisdom shining it its eyes. The Black ring was exactly the same as her brothers, and she felt the protection on her magic and body increase. It had its words at the bottom of the crest in silver '_Toujours Pur'_, the snake on the crest appeared to move once the ring slipped onto her finger, it slivered over the crest with no intention in stopping. The McKinnon Heir ring was gold and purple; she recognized the animal as a griffin with the family crest words _'Audentes fortuna juvat'_. The old magic of the rings sent out this unspoken message that it would detect potions in food it hovered over or that got consumed by her body, the rings knowledge became available in her mind alerting her to customs and family magic's lost since the last wearers. The unicorn shook its mane glowing white on the purple crest.

"Thank you," she beamed at the goblin realizing that these rings would protect Harry, protect them both.

"Now, we are wondering why you haven't replied to any of the letters we've sent you both over the years." Ripclaw suddenly scowled at them, sitting back in his chair with his eyes on them.

"Letters? We've never gotten letters until today. The Hogwarts acceptance letters are the only ones we've ever received to our knowledge." Harry frowned; he glanced at her in confusion.

"We've sent you account statements every month since your parents death since the accounts fell to you." Ripclaw let go of his anger, his eyes darting between them. "Everyone who has an account at Gringotts gets regular statements informing them of the current status of their account. Even if your underage. You are not yet entitled to get statements for the entire Potter, Peverell or McKinnon vaults, but you have access to the Evans Vault and the Potter and McKinnon Eduactional Trust Funds. Which is set-aside for the Houses Heirs during their school years. It's for Tuition fees, books, clothes and the like."

Ripclaw paused to gather breath. "You should have received the statements for those accounts. To let you know that your tuition will be paid into the correct amount come September, letters to let you know how much you have added into your vaults every month according to your parents wishes." They all sat in silence for a while, wondering where those letters had gone.

"Did your magical guardian keep them?" Ripclaw abruptly asked.

"Magical guardian? What's that?" She asked. The word guardian was familiar, but no one but the Dudley's had ever taken responsibility of them.

"Would I be correct in assuming that this magical guardian was meant to take care of us instead of the Dudley's?" Harry leaned forwards his eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Your magical guardian has the legal right and responsibility of taking care of minor wizards and witches. Once muggleborns accept a place in a magical school their magical guardianship is given to their new Headmaster or Headmistress. When they are sorted that guardianship is taken over by their Head of School House. This I understand is not usually told to the Muggleborn parents since the Ministry feels muggles can't care for someone of magical birth. Since you were orphaned at a young age your parents Will would have named a guardian in case of their death."

"Can we read their Will?" Harry asked quietly, his eyes withdrawn. Alyssa reached for his hand and squeezed it. Perhaps their parents Will had words for them.

"I shall have a reading scheduled for you." Ripclaw nodded and wrote something on a piece of parchment and deposited it into a similar box to the one the goblin at the counter had.

"May we take the Family trees?" She asked, looking at the names on the parchment written in their blood.

"I'm afraid not, those are for the records, and behind you is the entire heritage tree of the Potter Family which you are free to look at." Ripclaw pointed behind them, they turned around to see engraved marble, names covering the whole wall and covering some of the one next to it. "Most magical families have a family tapestry in their homes, no doubt there would be one in the Potter family manor."

They stared in wonder at their ancestry, all those names, and all those people who had lived before them. It made them feel less alone.

"What about the Inheritance ritual tests?" Harry asked tracing the words on the parchment in front of him.

"I will make copies if you wish to have them." Ripclaw nodded before taking all the ritual tests and taking them to his desk before he craved a symbol onto the back of them and pressed some different parchment on top of the words written in blood. There was a flash and the words appeared on the new parchment, which Ripclaw then handed to them.

"Thank you, Senior Account Keeper Ripclaw." They both said happily.

"Now, would you like to visit your vaults?" Ripclaw asked.

"Actually, I wanted to ask you if Gringotts have a medical wing? It suddenly occurred to me that there could be magical diseases and that we might not be vaccinated against them."


End file.
